RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA — A simple phone call could have Randall and Sharon Radcliff darting out of their Saturday night outing.

It’s all in the call of duty.

This Rancho Santa Margarita husband and wife own a local franchise of AristoCare, a company that provides short-term or long-term in-home care and senior services.

Q: Who are your clients?

A: We have a lot of clients who areover 75 years old. We also have clients who are disabled and we take care of children with disabilities. We do everything from cradle to grave… we can do it all.

Q: What do you do once you get a call from a prospective client?

A: We do an intake assessment to see how bad the situation is… we then call a nurse to go see them. Once we get the needs over the phone we begin to look for our staff to see who could meet their needs. That can happen within a matter of hours.

Q: What are the goals of AristoCare?

A: Our goal is to keep our clients living independently as long as possible. Each case is unique so our care plan is individualized based on the client’s needs. We want to give seniors the option to live in their own home. It is much better than being put in a nursing home. The more independent you could keep a senior, the better quality of life they could have.

Q: What differentiates your in-home care business from others?

A: We are a medical model. We have a full-time registered nurses and staff. It’s important for medical professionals to oversee care. We stay engaged with family members of our clients. For family members who are out of the area we communicate with them through teleconferences. We have served more than 120 clients. All our caregivers are employees who receive benefits such as work compensation, Medicare, and disability. We as a company take 100 percent responsibility for clients at home. We cover them fully.

Q: What are your future goals?

A: Our goal is to continue to expand our administrative staff and to have up to 200 caregivers. We are also hoping to have a satellite office in Huntington Beach to serve the northern and coastal regions.

Q: What were your start-up costs?

A: An estimated half a million.

Q: How did you choose your location?

A: We looked at about 50 different places. We wanted a place close to the freeway and something that was clean and professional to have clients and family members come in.

Q: What process do you go through to hire your employees?

A: Caregivers are heavily screen-checked. We check their DMV records, insurance, credit history and we provide a four-hour orientation.

Q: How long did it take you to get from idea to open doors?

A: It took us about 6 months and we did write a business plan.

Q: What is your background?

A: Sharon earned her bachelor’s degree in biology and medical technology from the Florida Atlantic University in Florida. I earned my bachelor’s degree in business administration from Cal State University, Stanislaus in Northern California.

Alejandra Molina has been a reporter since 2006 and has covered a number of beats -- from crime and transportation to religion and immigration -- for The Orange County Register and The Press-Enterprise.

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